"In order to get people to examine their drinking they need to become aware of why they are doing it and what motivates them."

The Nine Types of Drinker

Name Characteristics Key motivations

Depressed drinker | Life in a state of crisis eg recently bereaved, divorced or in financial crisis | Alcohol is a comforter and a form of self-medication used to help them cope

De-stress drinker | Pressurised job or stressful home life leads to feelings of being out of control and burdened with responsibility | Alcohol is used to relax, unwind and calm down and to gain a sense of control when switching between work and personal life. Partners often support or reinforce behaviour by preparing drinks for them

Re-bonding drinker | Relevant to those with a very busy social calendar | Alcohol is the ‘shared connector' that unifies and gets them on the same level. They often forget the time and the amount they are consuming

Conformist drinker | Traditional guys who believe that going to the pub every night is ‘what men do' | Justify it as ‘me time'. The pub is their second home and they feel a strong sense of belonging and acceptance within this environment

Community drinker | Drink in fairly large social friendship groups | The sense of community forged through the pub-group. Drinking provides a sense of safety and security and gives their lives meaning. It also acts a social network

Boredom drinker | Typically single mums or recent divorcees with restricted social life | Drinking is company, making up for an absence of people. Drinking marks the end of the day, perhaps following the completion of chores

Macho drinker | Often feeling under-valued, disempowered and frustrated in important areas of their life | Have actively cultivated a strong ‘alpha male' that revolves around their drinking ‘prowess'. Drinking is driven by a constant need to assert their masculinity and status to themselves and others

Hedonistic drinker | Single, divorced and/or with grown up children | Drinking excessively is a way of visibly expressing their independence, freedom and ‘youthfulness' to themselves. Alcohol used to release inhibitions

Border dependents | Men who effectively live in the pub which, for them, is very much a home from home | A combination of motives, including boredom, the need to conform, and a general sense of malaise in their lives___________source: BBC News